Tracker,
Great point.
I try to teach my kids the same thing. Sometimes it gets then into trouble, and sometimes, it gets me into trouble with their MaMa.

Eric

Teaching these days is no more than a competition amongst teachers, principals, and school administrators, at least here in Ohio. ALL students are now required to pass a test in order to graduate from High School, which has reduced the students to just a bragging point. I've heard the conversations, they always include a percentage (82% passed) of students who pass the test.It doesn't matter anymore if you can form an original thought, as long as you can define "original thought". Or "original". Or "thought". Ask a current student what an original thought is and they'll ask "what do you mean?" or moe likely the response will be "HUH??". It's scary to think that the "HUH?" generation will soon be the decision makers in this country.

Teaching these days is no more than a competition amongst teachers, principals, and school administrators, at least here in Ohio. ALL students are now required to pass a test in order to graduate from High School, which has reduced the students to just a bragging point. I've heard the conversations, they always include a percentage (82% passed) of students who pass the test.It doesn't matter anymore if you can form an original thought, as long as you can define "original thought". Or "original". Or "thought". Ask a current student what an original thought is and they'll ask "what do you mean?" or moe likely the response will be "HUH??". It's scary to think that the "HUH?" generation will soon be the decision makers in this country.

HUH??

How'd that happen??

I've heard the same things here in California or as Bushy says USSR of C. The teachers are talking about what the test scores are and if they went up or down. I know around here it's because test grades define how much money the school gets and if the state or federal government is going to take over the school.

I have a few seniors who haven't passed the CAHSEE, the exit exam, and they won't know until after graduation if they did or not. Trying to get them to think for themselves is next to impossible. I'm being told I expect to much from them and not worry since some of them will never make it out of high school.

I truly believe that this is the first generation that will be dummer than their parents. I've taken the time to get to know my students and am in shock to hear how their other teachers treat them. If you don't like the kids get a different job. Who gives a flying fig about test grades, if the kids learn to think for themselves and learn what is needed tests don't mean anything. Some kids just can't take tests.

My wife is ten years younger than me so I tell her that my generation put men on the moon, and her generation crashed the shuttle twice.
My point gets made when I say that.

Eric

rdncktink wrote:

bad spelling doesn't show how smart a person is. I have really bad spelling since I can't hear all of the sounds due to a pre-lingual hearing lose. I made it out of grad school with a 3.81 and my seniors are still catching my spelling errors in class.

It does show how much you care about communicating in the english language, which does show how smart you are.

Tink you're a teacher and shouldnt have bad spelling at all.

My sister is completely deaf (among other things)and she gets onto me about my spelling alllllll the time.
She reads alot, she does crosswords and she is totally focused on spelling things right and she isnt a teacher.

I took my kids out of a class that had a teacher that I thought was not up to teaching due to her poor hygiene for one, and her use of the english language for another.
You arent just communicating with your students but with their parents.
Read a dictionary, (one of my fav books) it will help according to my sister's advice. I read many different language dictionaries for fun.

tootles

[I truly believe that this is the first generation that will be dummer than their parents. .[/quote]

I wouldnt say the first generation, maybe the second one that Ive seen.
but I totally agree with you here.

There are many of my own generation that prove their dim switch is stuck.
And they cant talk unless its ebonics.

The caring in this country continues to dissolve and it seems thats the kids motto.
"I dont care"
scary really. Concidering they are our future.

From where I was in my spelling to where I am now it is amazing. There are still parts of english that gives me problems. Currently it is when I write faster than I can think. I also try and have someone double check things I send home. I leave in some of my mistakes to see if the students catch them. Those that do find my mistakes, spelling and grammar, get extra credit. I just know that it was annoying hearing that I was stupid because of my spelling. Teachers would tell me not to worry that I wasn't going to make it out of high school so it didn't matter how I spelled things. When I was in school they had decided that phonics was the way to teach spelling and never taught me how to spell since I couldn't figure out the sounds. From lots of work on my mom's part and a lot of reading on mine my spelling has gotten to a level that only a few words cause me problems. I still say that spelling doesn't show intelligence but can be used as one of many ways to judge it.

As for this generation on the "I don't care" heard that about a dozen times today trying to get them to study for their finals next week.

oh and if a teacher can't have bad spelling than someone needs to fix the textbooks to because at least every section has something miss spelled or the wrong date.

yea someone didnt proof it before sending it to the printers.
they must not have cared.

Tink...Dictionary my dear, dictionary...I keep one at hand next to my compiter at all times...(and I still misspell a word here and there)

I just use a built in spell checker in FireFox, gets most things unless I forget to go back and make sure they are written right.

Dimitri

Wot....me fail Engrish....UNPOSSIBLE

The easiest and best way to learn to spell, and to learn English is to read. When you stumble on a word go back and sound it out over and over till you have it.

Cheers, Vince

Bushmaster wrote:

Tink...Dictionary my dear, dictionary...I keep one at hand next to my compiter at all times...(and I still misspell a word here and there)

I put a dictionary program on the computer and use it a lot. Only problem is when I think I know how to spell it and don't and it's a real word and the grammar/spell checker doesn't catch it.

Vince wrote:

The easiest and best way to learn to spell, and to learn English is to read.

I read all I can and it has helped a lot. So has taking some forgein language classes.